Pirates/Transcript
Transcript Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby An animation shows a man, Tim, dressed as a pirate with a sword. TIM: Yargh! An animation shows Moby, a robot, dressed as a pirate. Moby swings on a rope and knocks Tim down. A letter lies next to Tim on the floor. Tim reads from a typed letter. TIM: Dear Tim & Moby, Pirates are fun. Do a movie on pirates! From, Dunsten An animation shows Tim standing up next to Moby. TIM: Yeah, pirates are fun, unless you're getting attacked by pirates, I guess. MOBY: Beep? Tim: Well, a pirate is basically a robber who works at sea instead of land. An animation shows a large ship with several masts sailing the ocean. A flag with a skull flies on the ship's mast. TIM: For as long as people have been using ships to transport valuables, there have been pirates trying to rob them. An animation shows an Egyptian boat laden with gold. TIM: Thousands of years ago, a group known as the Sea Peoples terrorized the Mediterranean, attacking other ships and burning entire cities to the ground. An animation shows warriors on a ship sailing after the Egyptian ship. TIM: And starting in the 13th century, the Wakou pirates raided the coasts of China and Korea for hundreds of years. An animation shows pirate ships attacking a coastal settlement. TIM: But the pirates people usually think of are the ones from the Golden Age of Piracy. An animation shows a pirate with a parrot on his shoulder and a hook for a hand. MOBY: Beep. TIM: That's right; that was a period of increased piracy in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. An animation shows a map of the world. TIM: Pirates then were especially common in the Caribbean Sea and off the Atlantic Coast of North America. An animation zooms in on the world map to show flags marking known pirate locations in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. MOBY: Beep. TIM: At that point in history, European countries, especially Spain, were combing the New World for gold, silver, and gems. An animation shows a Spanish soldier sitting on top of a horse on a beach as indigenous people carry supplies to a Spanish ship offshore. TIM: Ships loaded with this valuable cargo were constantly sailing from the Americas back to Europe. These were a favorite target for pirates and privateers. An animation shows a map of the Atlantic Ocean. A ship sails from the Caribbean toward Europe. On the map, the ship is stopped in the middle of the ocean, surrounded by pirate flags, an English flag, and a French flag. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Oh, a privateer was basically a pirate who got permission from his government to attack the ships and settlements of enemy countries. An animation shows a pirate being handed a signed piece of paper by a government official. TIM: This special permission was called a Letter of Marque and Reprisal. Privateering was a common way for rival countries to hurt each other without starting a full-fledged war. The privateer Francis Drake was so successful in his attacks on Spanish ships that Queen Elizabeth I of England actually knighted him in 1581. An animation shows Queen Elizabeth knighting Francis Drake on a wooden ship. TIM: In the 17th century, bitter rivalries between European countries meant the oceans were crawling with privateers waiting for an opportunity to strike the ships of their enemies. An animation shows a ship with an English flag. TIM: But, in the second half of that century, tensions between privateering countries began to ease. That left a lot of privateers with no work, so many of them continued to do what they did best: raiding ships and towns, but now without any government's permission. The English flag is removed from the mast of the ship. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Right! Without a Letter of Marque and Reprisal, they became pirates. A pirate flag is raised on the ship's mast. TIM: Using small, fast ships, pirates could easily overtake slower merchant vessels and attack them with cannon fire. An animation shows a small pirate ship sailing alongside a larger merchant ship and attacking it with cannon fire. The cannonballs leave holes in the side of the ship. TIM: They would approach the damaged ship and throw grappling hooks over to it, pulling it close enough for them to board. An animation shows the small pirate ship throwing metal hooks over the side of the larger merchant ship. The pirate ship pulls closer to the merchant ship. TIM: Many of those attacked surrendered without a fight. Then, the pirates would scour the ship for booty. An animation shows pirates boarding the merchant ship with weapons. MOBY: Beep! An animation shows Moby laughing. TIM: No, no, booty is what pirates called treasure. An animation shows a wooden treasure chest sparkling with gold and gems. TIM: But the most common things pirates took from other ships were basic provisions, like food, water, and rum. They would also take any sailors who wanted to join them. An animation shows a sailor from the defeated ship joining the pirates. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Yeah, you know, a lot of sailors did join them. You have to remember that being a regular sailor was a tough life back then. The work was hard and the ship captains were often jerks. An animation shows a sailor laboring under the watchful eye of a stern officer. TIM: By contrast, most pirate ships were run democratically. The crew actually voted on their leaders. An animation shows a group of pirates raising their hands to vote. TIM: And all the booty was divided up among the crew, too. An animation shows a wooden treasure chest sparkling with gold and gems. MOBY: Beep. TIM: That's . . . That's probably why pirates were admired as much as they were feared. To many they weren't just criminals; they were symbols of freedom and adventure. An animation shows a pirate on a ship at night, holding a sword. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Oh, actually the whole idea of buried treasure is mainly a myth. Most pirates spent their treasure soon after getting it. An animation shows a treasure map. TIM: William Kidd is the only pirate historians think really did bury some treasure. An animation shows a pirate on a beach, burying his treasure. TIM: It's thought that he may have stashed it on Long Island or possibly Connecticut. An animation shows a map of Long Island and Connecticut. TIM: Probably the most famous pirate of that time was Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard. An animation shows a fearsome pirate with a large black beard. TIM: Known for his ferocity in battle, he would tie burning matches to his beard and hair to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies. An animation shows Blackbeard attacking. TIM: If a ship surrendered peacefully, he let the crew go. But if it put up a fight, he would kill everyone on board. MOBY: Beep. An animation shows Moby with matches taped to his chin. TIM: Yeah, it doesn't really work without a beard, I think. It's just kind of weird looking. An animation shows Moby leaning toward Tim. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Get away from me! Category:BrainPOP Transcripts Category:BrainPOP Social Studies Transcripts